England’s last-16 World Cup clash with Mexico at the Azteca Stadium carries the weight of history as well as the fierce intensity of an entire nation.
The atmosphere in Mexico City was already reaching fever pitch more than 24 hours before the game, with giant screens erected along Paseo de la Reforma and car horns blaring along the historic avenue.
Mexico have not conceded a single goal in the tournament and have lost only two competitive games out of 88 played at their spiritual home ground.
England arrived in Mexico on Friday evening, giving them little time to adjust to conditions at the Azteca, which stands 7,220 feet above sea level.
Having played previous games in the temperature-controlled environments of Dallas and Atlanta, then in the rain of Boston and New Jersey, England now face truly alien conditions at altitude.
Head coach Thomas Tuchel spoke at the Azteca and appeared to relish the occasion, saying: “We saw the excitement and the emotions of the people when we arrived. They were emotional but also very, very respectful.”
Tuchel added: “We felt the energy of the place right away, the people on the streets. You can feel the excitement. This is a next-level setting.”
He also warned his players about what awaits them, saying: “Mexico will give us a taste of the intensity, the heat and we must find solutions to that.”
England’s unhappy history in this part of the world looms large, stretching back to their ill-fated 1970 campaign under Sir Alf Ramsey to defend the World Cup they won at Wembley four years earlier.
The most notorious moment came when Diego Maradona’s Hand of God goal gave Argentina a World Cup quarter-final victory at the Azteca, before he added a second with a breathtaking slalom run to seal a 2-1 win.
England’s 1970 campaign was also scarred by the infamous incident involving captain Bobby Moore, accused of stealing a bracelet from a shop in Bogota before the tournament even began, with then Prime Minister Harold Wilson eventually coming to his aid.
Their grip on the Jules Rimet Trophy was ultimately ended by West Germany in the searing heat of Leon, with England losing a two-goal lead to fall 3-2 after extra time.
That defeat was further clouded by the alleged stomach poisoning of goalkeeper Gordon Banks, whose illness — now known as Montezuma’s Revenge — forced Peter Bonetti to step in for a nightmare performance.
Mexico television reporter Gibran Araige Rodriguez captured the scale of the occasion, saying: “It is the most important football game in the life of Mexico. It is the most important game in the history of the Azteca.”
Rodriguez added: “It is 40 years since Mexico reached the last eight of the World Cup and it is the dream of the whole country to do it this time.”
England, who needed a late Harry Kane intervention to beat DR Congo 2-1 in the last 32, have not looked fully convincing and carry concerns in defence into Sunday’s match.
Mexico, by contrast, produced their best attacking display of the tournament in beating Ecuador 2-0 and arrive brimming with confidence but, according to Rodriguez, without complacency.
“Mexico is confident but never over-confident because this is England,” Rodriguez said. “The Mexico team is good and we have not conceded a goal.”
The Azteca on Sunday night promises to be an atmosphere unlike anything England have faced at this World Cup, and perhaps anything they have faced for a generation.
